Cuyahoga County coronavirus cases were in Egypt, Washington DC

CLEVELAND (WW)– Officials from the city of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County and the local hospitals discussed coronavirus during a news conference on Monday.

Mayor Frank Jackson and Cuyahoga County Board of Health Commissioner Terry Allan were joined by representatives from the Cleveland Clinic, MetroHealth Medical Center, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center and St. Vincent Charity Medical Center.

The news conference was originally intended to be about coronavirus preparedness. But as it was supposed to start, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced three confirmed cases in the state. All three people are from Cuyahoga County.

Allan said the three Cuyahoga County residents, two men and one woman, are isolated. They are ages 54 to 56 and live outside of the city of Cleveland.

Two were on a trip to Egypt and one was at a conference in Washington D.C. The board of health did not release where the patients live, when they returned to the area or how they traveled.

Six additional people who had close contact with the patients are also on home quarantine, Allan said. Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton said you will be notified if you’ve had contact with an infected person.

None of them have been hospitalized, Allan said. Health officials said emergency workers have safety gear in case these people need to be transported to the hospital.

At this time, Jackson said there are no plans to cancel any major events scheduled for Cleveland in coming weeks, including the MAC Tournament, the NCAA Tournament, and campaign events for Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden.

Novel coronavirus, also called COVID-19, emerged in Wuhan City, China in December. Symptoms include fever, cough and shortness of breath.